Mental health played role in police standoff

William Gorman of Waukesha was not legally responsible for his actions when he challenged police to a shootout outside his home during an hourslong standoff with law enforcement earlier this year, according to a Waukesha County Circuit Court judge.

Gorman, 53, pleaded guilty but not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect Wednesday, Nov. 18, to one felony count of first-degree recklessly endangering safety tied to the standoff incident. Judge Ralph Ramirez found Gorman guilty of actually committing the crime, but absolved Gorman of legal responsibility for the offense because of Gorman's mental condition, which has been deemed unstable, according to court documents. As a result, Gorman will likely be placed in the care of the county Health and Human Services Department. Court records show Ramirez ordered the department to prepare a treatment plan for him.

Gorman was charged in May with two counts of recklessly endangering safety and failure to comply with an officer's attempt to take him into custody about a month after he was arrested following an hourslong standoff with police outside his home on Maple Avenue in Waukesha.

Court records previously listed Gorman as a Delafield resident; his home is near the Waukesha-Delafield border.

According to a criminal complaint, a report of multiple gunshots coming from Gorman's home triggered a response from several area police departments, which evacuated the surrounding area and shut down a portion of Maple Avenue during the incident. Gorman, a retired Milwaukee detective with military experience, reportedly exited his home armed with a rifle at some point during the standoff, fired a shot in the air and said he was "going to go out in a blaze of glory" before challenging police to a shootout.

His wife described him to officers as "mentally ill, possibly schizophrenic, very paranoid" and frequently armed, according to the complaint. The complaint said that Gorman was trained as a firearms instructor, and several guns and large amounts of ammunition were seized from the residence during a routine search of the home after the standoff.

A sentencing hearing for Gorman has been scheduled for Jan. 21.